HOMICIDE UNIT INVESTIGATING DOWNTOWN MURDER

On July 26, 2014, at approximately 5:40 am, emergency services personnel were dispatched to a report of a fire alarm at an apartment building in the 100 block of Hargrave Street.

On arrival, fire fighters extinguished a small fire within a suite and located a male victim with injuries to his upper body. The man was transported to hospital in critical condition where he later died.

The WPS Homicide Unit were called to investigate.

The fire was contained to the subject suite and caused an estimated $10,000 in damage.

Police indicate the results of an autopsy are pending and confirmed the death is considered a Homicide.

The victim’s name has not been released pending the notifications of next of kin.

The victim in this case represents the fourteenth (14th) homicide victim in Winnipeg this year.

Police have solved all but three (3) of the fourteen (14) cases.

This case represents the fourth (4th) murder in July this year.

Police are asking anyone who has information about the incident or the suspect (s) is asked to contact investigators at (204) 986-6508 or CrimeStoppers at (204) 786-TIPS (8477).

UPDATE:

The victim in this case has been identified as Arthur Haussermann (53) years of Winnipeg.

Police have yet to confirm the cause of death.

INSIDER COMMENTARY:

Although rare, killers do occasionally use arson to destroy evidence at a crime scene.

An intense fire can destroy fingerprints, DNA and other evidence that might be used to convict a suspect.

On January 31st, 2009, Dennis Baptiste (23) and Jesse Henderson (23) were found murdered in a suite at 729 Maryland Ave. Both victims were members of a Winnipeg Street gang who had been beaten and fatally stabbed to death. After the murders, the killer set a fire on a stove in an attempt to destroy evidence crime scene evidence.

The fire scorched portions of the suite but failed to destroy certain crucial evidence.

Some of that crucial evidence turned out to be hairs found at the crime scene that provided a DNA match to the suspected killer.

Kenneth Roulette (28) was found subsequently found guilty of 1st degree murder and was sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole for twenty-five (25) years.